Stock futures are pointing slightly lower, which isn’t exactly inspiring much confidence after the beating investors took in the previous trading session. Dow futures are down 42 points ahead of the open, while S&P 500 futures are down 3 points.

Economic data this morning was dismal. Jobless claims surged, although the big increase was likely due to regions impacted by Superstorm Sandy. The eurozone economy contracted in the third quarter, which isn’t helping matters.

But for now, the main concern in the market is the same one that has dominated investors’ minds since election day: the fiscal cliff. From Washington to Wall Street, people are worried about how tax increases and spending cuts will impact the already fragile U.S. economy.

President Obama’s news conference yesterday indicated he’s going to take a tough stance against Republicans, which some market participants worry could make for a pretty contentious environment as the end of the year approaches.

“Investors are disgusted, seem to be voting ‘no confidence’ on the direction of the [fiscal] talks and whether they are even able to reach a compromise at all” says Kenneth Polcari, a managing director at brokerage ICAP Equities.

That sentiment has played a major role in why the Dow has lost 5.1% since Election Day. The blue-chip measure sits at its lowest level since June 26 and is only up less than 3% for the year.

The tech-oriented Nasdaq Comp and the small-stock-focused Russell 2000 are already in correction territory, considered a drop of at least 10% from a recent peak. Much of the Nasdaq’s declines can be contributed to high profile tech stocks that have struggled, such as Amazon.com Inc.Google Inc.Microsoft Corp., and especially Apple Inc. The world’s biggest company has seen its stock price tumble 24% in less than two months.

The S&P 500, at 1355, is down more than 7% since mid-September, when the Fed unleashed its latest bond-buying program intended to boost the economy. Several market participants suggest the market will get worse before it gets better.

“While the market has the calendar on its side (the last six weeks of the year are typically good for stocks), we’re still not convinced any oversold bounce makes much headway,” says Chris Verrone, a technical analyst at Strategas Research Partners in New York.

From current levels, he says the S&P 500 has support around 1325, which marks about a 10% drop from the Sept. 14 high. “Beneath that, 1300 likely holds some psychological significance and 1278 is the June 1 closing low,” Verrone adds.

As today’s Morning MarketBeat noted, the market finds itself in a precarious position. Earnings haven’t been great, Europe’s debt crisis continues to flare up and some of the market’s important technical levels have been breached.

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